65. Scarlatti’s Harpsichord

Domenico Scarlatti, a contemporary of Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frideric Handel, was one of the musical stars of the first half of the 18th century, not only as a composer but also as a performer. In a harpsichord duel organized in Rome by Cardinal Pietro Ottoboni, he proved to be at least Handel’s equal. Scarlatti wrote over five hundred one-movement harpsichord sonatas. He used various terms to refer to this instrument – the Italian cembalo, but also the Spanish clavicordio – which is the source of the occasional misconception that he composed with the clavichord in mind. In these works, he exploited the instrument’s full potential and did not shy away from technical challenges – and not merely because he himself was a harpsichord virtuoso. He referred to some of them as essercizi, meaning exercises or etudes. He wrote many of these pieces for his talented and equally accomplished student, the Portuguese princess and later Queen of Spain, María Bárbara. Pierre Hantaï, the unrivaled contemporary interpreter of Scarlatti, says that this music requires a performer who is “a proud colorist, excited by sudden changes in texture.” We do not know if María Bárbara or the composer himself played like this, but we can find out if Hantaï himself does.

– Dominika Micał (pisanezesluchu.pl)